When
Linda Zangrilli joined SCORE Bucks County she was in the minority among the
chapter’s mostly male certified mentors. Fast forward nearly four years and the
trailblazing Zangrilli is the first woman ever to serve as chair of the Bucks
County Chapter.“What
I discovered as I got more involved at the district level, was that there were
many impressive professional women committed to the SCORE mission,” Zangrilli,
of Northampton Township, said. “I was inspired by their leadership and decided
to help my chapter become more diverse and inclusive.”
Zangrilli
replaces David Boster, who had served as the chapter’s chairman for the last
two years.
Recognizing
the importance of a woman’s perspective for the growing number of female
entrepreneurs and women-owned businesses in Bucks County, Zangrilli is
encouraging more women to join her in providing local small business mentoring
as a branch of the national nonprofit organization.
“I
recently convinced a colleague of mine to come onboard. She was hesitant at
first but is now fully committed to the SCORE mission of helping to foster
small business. I need more people like her, experienced business professionals
who are free enough to commit their time and believe in what we do,” Zangrilli
said. “Most importantly, I hope to create an environment that promotes member
engagement. We need all members, whether male or female, to participate fully
in the chapter. And I’ve got to find the magic to make that happen.”
If
there’s magic to be had, Zangrilli is the woman to find it. Soon after joining
SCORE, she served the chapter’s executive committee as the recording secretary.
When the chapter launched its annual signature Women Building Businesses
workshop and networking session in 2016, Zangrilli, along with a handful of
SCORE mentors, led the charge to organize the event, line up speakers, breakout
sessions and myriad relevant topics for women. Held each year in June, the 2020
event was cancelled because of COVID-19 concerns. SCORE switched the format of
its in-person educational workshops to webinars in response to the pandemic.
Zangrilli said she hopes to relaunch the women’s event in April 2021.
Among
her other goals, Zangrilli wants to collaborate with other SCORE chapters to discover
best practices for chapter operation. In addition, Zangrilli hopes to maintain -
and improve upon - the chapter’s positive momentum. The Bucks chapter was
recently awarded Platinum Level Status, the highest recognition possible for
any local chapter. The
primary measure in qualifying for platinum status is customer satisfaction
as shown by positive client feedback, volunteer satisfaction, as well
as the number of client services provided to the community.
Customer
service has been a core pillar for Zangrilli throughout her professional life.
For more than 25 years she worked in operations management, customer service
and management. She spent most of her career running both large and small call
centers that handled customer service and sales support for many different
business segments. After retiring in May 2016 from Schiller Grounds Care
Inc., Zangrilli sought an impactful use of her free time.
“I’m
used to going 100 miles per hour,” she said. “I couldn’t just stop.”
Her
online research led her to SCORE. Even though Zangrilli never owned a business,
she discovered that she had a knack for mentoring. Business skills, whether
learned through owning your own business or through working in corporate life,
translate the same.
“I
tend to keep my clients for a long time. Several of my clients have been with
me since I started to mentor,” she said. “SCORE mentoring does not have an expiration
date. If you need us, we’ll keep mentoring you.”
About SCORE???
Since 1964, SCORE has helped more than 8.5 million aspiring
entrepreneurs. Each year, SCORE provides small business mentoring and workshops to more than 375,000 new
and growing small businesses.?With 50 members across the
county, SCORE Bucks?County?provides over 1,500 free
mentoring services annually to local small business owners
through one-on-one counseling and small business seminars. To stay up to
date on news and happenings, join SCORE Bucks County’s email list. Text
SCOREBUCKS to 22828.
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